Reason
by texaswookie
Summary: There was a reason beyond simple emotions that Buffy couldn't stake Angelus. Xander found someone to help with the problem though.


Just a little something that has been spinning inside my head for a while. Held off on writing it because Mmooch wrote a similar one in their betrayal series. I don't own BTVS or Charmed.

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><p>Xander sighed as he pulled into the parking lot of Sunnydale High with his uncle Rory's car. He noticed the car of the people he had invited from out of town. He nodded as the owners of the other car got out. The group silently followed after the teen as he made his way to the library. He slipped in and saw Giles scowling as he looked over the various items scattered around the table. He winced slightly as he realized that they had all kind of torn through the Watcher's book collection when looking through the collection of books in an attempt to find out how they might be able to stop the Judge.<p>

"Xander." The Watcher greeted.

"Hey Giles." Xander returned, wondering how the Watcher was going to react to the group that followed after him. "Look this is going to seem kind of weird, but this is something that has to happen." He tried to explain.

"What are you talking about Xander?" The man stopped, as he saw a trio of young women enter behind him. Bound in the middle with glowing bands was Buffy. "Xander, behind you." He warned as he glanced around for a weapon that he could use.

"Don't worry Giles their on our side." The teen explained quickly. "Honest."

Giles glared at the teen. "Explain." He ordered curtly.

"Ah yeah, when we were going through the books and stuff Cordellia found a book on different bloodlines of witches." Xander explained. "She used daddy's credit cards to convince one family to come down here. It was her backup plan to my backup plan. Obviously she didn't trust my plan as completely as she made us believe. Not exactly great when she's supposed to be my girlfriend." He grumbled.

"And what, did she offer Buffy as a trade?" Giles questioned. He knew that the boy was having problems with the blonde because of her reluctance to do anything to Angel, but he would never have thought that he would have resorted to something like this.

"No, of course not." Xander returned, sounding hurt that the Watcher would even say such a thing.

"Then what is going on?" Giles requested in frustration since the youth had yet to truly explain why his friend was magically bound by these women .

"Rupert Giles, I'm Prue Haliwell." The leader of the women explained offering her hand. These are my sisters Piper and Phoebe." She explained waving to each of her sisters. "I believe we met a time or two when you were acquiring antiques in San Francisco."

"Yes I remember." Giles returned to the woman stiffly. "Now why is my Slayer your prisoner?" He demanded.

"It all goes back to the vampire Angelus. I'd like you to think for a moment about how she acted when she first met him and her reactions compared to her behavior now. I would also like you to consider any similar times when she had to deal with vampires she had a personal relationship with." Prue answered.

Giles nodded as he thought about what she asked. The more he thought about it, the more disturbed he became. While Buffy had at first seemed somewhat starry eyed over Angel she had quickly become obsessed with the vampire at a speed that hadn't seem healthy. He also considered how quickly she had dusted her former flame Ford. When it was put like that, it did seem rather odd her reluctance to end Angelus. He had thought it might have something to do with being a teenager, or even having cared for Angelus as both a vampire and a person. There was no way that he was going to call that thing a man. "I take it you have an answer to this?"

"That we do." Piper answered as she tipped a bag over.

Giles glanced down and saw two small iron boxes and what looked like Buffy's jacket. He reached down and picked the boxes up. He glanced at the women who nodded and he flipped the boxes open. He was somewhat surprised at what he was seeing. Buffy's ring, and cross necklace. "What is this?"

"The vampire Angelus gave each of these items to your Slayer correct?" Phoebe asked him curiously.

"Yes." Giles agreed somewhat hesitantly.

"We understand you have some skills in the mystic arts." Piper pointed out, as she held a piece of paper out to him. "Here, this is a revealing spell cast it." She offered.

Giles nodded, and mumbled the spell he saw the items lit up. Frowning he mumbled another spell and the objects lit up yet again. "What is the meaning of this?" He demanded, as he glared at the three women.

"You know what they are Mr. Giles, you just don't want to admit." Phoebe shot back at him. The young woman was obviously not going to be intimidated by the Watcher.

"Loyalty and Love Charms are covering these items though." Giles noted weakly.

Piper nodded her head as she confirmed what the Watcher was scared to say. "Yes, powerful and strong ones. It looks like the vampire was prepared for the long term. He had each of these objects heavily enchanted so that he could gift them to your slayer who wore them nearly all the time. At night when she was slaying she wore the jacket while the necklace and ring were on her at all times. She was wearing all of them when we met her."

"That means though." The Watcher trailed off fearfully, his eyes widening in understanding.

"That its a miracle that she was even able to lift her hand just to hit him." Prue explained with a sad frown. "She has been battling the power of this spell, while still hanging onto the enchanted objects whose individual power was enhanced by a power of three."

"Three gifts." Giles repeated in horror, as he realized the mental anguish that Buffy had likely been going through to even fight Angelus. And he hadn't even been aware of it. It made some of her actions so much more understandable, and the ones of Angel all the more deplorable. Since the vampire had strung her along for over a year while slowly, but surely introducing these objects to Buffy allowing them to influence her decision making. To make it even worse, she was now having to try and actively fight the spells because of what her duties were. He should have realized that something was up when he saw how quickly she was willing to deal with Billy Ford after he became a vampire, yet had been unable to use the same decisive methods on another that she proclaimed to love. From what he had gathered Buffy and Ford had been friends for many years. Their parents likely having them socialize together. While not on the same level as the friendship of Xander and Willow, it had still been a strong bond. For Buffy it had been a mercy killing of her old friend. It made so much more sense now. It also showed him just how much he had failed her as well.

"Yes you're getting something of an idea of what she's been going through." Prue noted kindly, not interested in kicking the man while he was down. The vampire had offered them slowly and in ways that insured that he wouldn't be able to investigate them. It just went to show how well the vampire planned when he wanted to. "Xander here came to us, and kind of demanded judgment. He was so angry over everything that he thought that she had allowed him to do, that he wanted her to own up to things."

"Yeah when they told me this though, I wasn't thrilled." Xander admitted, flinching slightly as Buffy tried to throw herself at Xander. The magical binding flashed and sparked but held her in place.

"Its ripping her mind apart isn't it?" Giles asked, as he looked at his Slayer sorrowfully.

"Yes, but she can be healed. As long as we get to it. She may always have feelings towards vampires though." Piper warned the man. "However she should be able to make some decisions on her own again, and he won't be the first thing that she thinks of either."

"She should be commended for even being able to hit the guy though." Phoebe told the man. It was basically like getting hit with a long term date rape drug or some form of mind control." She spat out. None of the young women looked happy about what the vampire had managed.

"What do you need?" Giles asked.

"We can end the spell, but we need someone that she will listen to, to help her understand this though. She's going to be a mess after this is all over." Piper explained to him. "It might even be good for her to come and visit us after a while to make sure that everything is alright."

"We can also purge her body of any potions or spells that are in her." Phoebe suggested.

"Very well." Giles returned. "Lets do it. The sooner its dealt with the better."

The sisters nodded as they surrounded her and began chanting. Pink mist rose out of each object and joined together forming a dark and angry cloud of pink. They then saw as Buffy's eyes flared with pink energy for a moment before the pink began pouring out of her mouth seemed to be pulled away from her body to join the mass of pink that was before them. As soon as the last of the pink left her Buffy's body fell to the floor as if someone had cut her strings. The cloud rolled around a few times in the air as if it was a conscious and evil entity. Piper flicked her hands out at the cloud and they all watched as it exploded.

"So what now?" Xander asked worriedly his eyes looking at the Slayer worriedly.

"Now we see what happens when we let her go." Phoebe explained.

"Right, if its all the same to you guys I'm going to be on the other side of the room when you do that. Just in case." He reasoned. "If Buff decides to go on Slayer on me I want more than three steps between us." The others nodded their heads in agreement. A lot of her anger at Xander did make him the one at the most of a threat. The fact that the sisters wouldn't have the element of surprise meant that she wouldn't be caught off guard as easily either.

Once Xander was safe the sisters let the forcefield down and watched for a moment Buffy merely looked around the room with a variety of emotions on her face fear, anger, sadness happiness relief. It was impossible to tell what she was feeling. She curled up into a ball and her body began t shake as she held herself. Giles hesitantly moved over to her and wrapped his arms around the delicate seeming girl.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Buffy muttered over and over again.

Giles sighed as he saw the nightmare of nightmares brought down so low. Angel and Angelus had much to pay for. Any anger he had felt towards the Slayer over what had happened with Jenny was gone. There was no way that he was going to blame her for this. Maybe a clan of self righteous gypsies who could have finished this so long ago, but not her.

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><p>Angelus smirked as he walked down the street seeing Buffy standing there. She looked tired, but there was also a fire in her eyes. He didn't really worry to much about that though since he knew that there was no way that she was going to be able to do anything to him. That crazy defense that old Soul Boy had put in place was really paying off. Not that he was ever going to tell anyone the reason why the Slayer wouldn't do anything to him. Making everyone think that he was really that good was more fun. Besides it irritated Wheels to no end.<p>

"Buffy," he greeted with mock surprise. "What a pleasure to see you."

"Can't say the same." Buffy returned, as she raised her crossbow and fired.

Angelus was so shocked at her being able to shoot at him that he didn't even have time to react. The crossbow bolt hit him true. The vampire stumbled slightly before he turned to dust. His mind left wondering what happened. Had he misjudged the Slayer, had the spells worn off or had something else happened? All things that he wouldn't be able to figure out.

Once he returned to dust. Buffy tossed the jacket ring and necklace into a nearby fire barrel and lit them up. She then turned her back on them. It was over, she now had to try and get back the life that the vampire had stolen from her. She couldn't believe how much she had tried to change herself for a vampire like that.

As the Slayer slipped back into the shadows Whistler and the Angel of Destiny appeared at the side of the burned remains that had been the vampire. "My bosses are saying this one is your fault." He told the figure.

"Our fault?" The Angel of Destiny questioned curiously, raising her eyebrow at the Balance Demon.

"Yeah, if the Charmed Ones hadn't interfered then this wouldn't have happened." Whistler reasoned to the figure. "They had it all worked out you see. The Slayer's friends were supposed to stick his soul back in him, and he was supposed to get back on track for everything. Are you even aware of how much this has changed?" He demanded, somewhat annoyed as he thought of all of the conditions it had taken to manipulate to get everything the way that they needed it. It had been bad enough when the boy had revived the Slayer, now he had summoned the witches of the most powerful coven who had interfered with things. "Can't your bunch do something about this?" He pleaded with the figure.

"There is only so much interference we are allowed." The Angel of Destiny reminded the Balance Demon with a shrug. "Besides, there are ways that the dark can revive this one. What is the fate of one vampire in the balance?"

"Considering just what fate has in store with that vampire it means a lot." Whistler returned sourly. "To make it all the worse even after we revive him and stuff a soul back into him he'll still have to make a quick retreat unless he wants to be turned into a dust bunny again. Something tells me that the existance of a soul isn't going to slow the girl down if they were to ever meet again."

"Perhaps you should have chosen your champion more carefully." The Angel of Destiny returned, unperturbed. "What's done is done, it is up to them to decide what happens next."

Whistler grumbled out a few more choice phrases before the pair of them disappeared as the Powers that Be and Elders decided what they would do next. Fate and balance would have to be rechecked once again before they could decide what they would do again.


End file.
